Heart on Fire
by asimtold
Summary: Loki/OC fic. This is about two people who are lost. One has a gift, a power she doesn't want. The other uses his power for vengeance. Maybe one day, they'll find where they belong.


**Chapter One**

**Disclaimer**: I don't own anything. Except the OC, of course.

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Elizabeth stood near the edge of the cliff. The cold wind whipped her hair about her as she watched the sea below her move under the moonlight.

Every night she would do this. She would stand at the edge until she could feel some of the cold seeping through her. This was the only relief she had from the angry burning she felt inside.

She had always felt this burning, this fire for as long as she could remember. Opening her palm, Elizabeth created a small flame, watching it as the wind swayed it side to side.

_In the movies, they'd probably say I had a gift_, thought Elizabeth sarcastically. She didn't want this 'gift'. She didn't want this eternal burning she felt. She blamed all she never had on her 'gift'. One time when she was young, she lit a candle with her hand to impress the other kids, maybe even have friends, but all that had earned her was the nickname 'flamehead' for the whole year. It seemed fitting—she _did_ have red hair and the ability to create and manipulate fire after all. She had few friends throughout her all her school years, and she was never close with them. Elizabeth sighed. She wasn't close with anyone. Not even her parents—which was reasonable for her because her parents had abandoned her at an orphanage the day she was born.

_No parents, no friends, no job_, thought Elizabeth, _Perfect_. She gave the flame in her hand a glance before snuffing it out.

Brushing her hair behind her ear, Elizabeth sighed as she finally felt the coldness claw at her skin. She welcomed it, inviting it in so that it could make the burning in her go away, if only for a little while. Was there anyone who knew how she felt? Did they too feel a raging flame burning them from the inside? It didn't matter anyway because she was going to get rid of it. She vowed to herself that she would find a cure. Only then could she be truly happy.

Suddenly, there was a loud crash. Elizabeth spun around, hair spinning behind her as she peered into the dark woodlands behind her.

Another crash was heard, but this time, it was accompanied by what sounded like a pained grunt. _What _is_ that noise?_ Thought Elizabeth, _It definitely is a person, and they sound like they're hurt._

Weighing her chances, Elizabeth walked into the forest, deciding that she could always protect herself if she needed to. She almost scoffed aloud. _Finally_, she thought, _this power comes in handy._

The sound of waves crashing onto the rocky shore slowly disappeared as she ventured deeper into the woods. There was still no sign of any movement, and the noises hadn't resounded themselves. Elizabeth was almost glad for the warmth she had inside her—it kept her company. After all, the eerie darkness coupled with the wind moving ominously through the treetops wasn't an ideal combination for wandering through the woods.

Suddenly a twig snapped behind her. Elizabeth whirled around.

"Hello?" she squinted, trying to see better in the dark, "is anyone there?"

No reply. She briefly considered taking out some fire to light her surroundings, but she'd rather not scare off whoever it was.

Deciding she had had enough of the general spookiness of the place, she started making her way back to the cliff edge. Elizabeth was almost relieved to finally catch a glimpse of the shimmering sea. She walked further and further away from the heart of the woods, the dappled moonlight and the sound of the sea leading her back.

Suddenly, she saw a movement in the corner of her eye. She immediately turned around, shocked to see a man dressed in green robes and golden armour. She barely had time to register any of this before she was shoved into the tree behind her, a hand clutching at her throat.

The man smiled sinisterly at her, "Little, insignificant human. You should always know never to wander in the woods alone."

He tightened her grip on her, his green eyes shining with malice. Elizabeth's lungs were burning. She needed air.

She swung out her leg, only barely managing to clip the man just above his knee, and it seemed to do no more than merely distract him.

But that was all she needed. He had loosened his grip in that small moment, and Elizabeth took advantage of this opportunity and sucked in some air. She could feel the oxygen refuelling the fire inside her and it felt glorious.

She let the fire inside her overcome her and it grew from her palms, growing stronger within split seconds. She let out a blast of flames toward the man, sending him reeling backwards.

He looked shocked, but mostly enraged.

"You!" he snarled, "the Tesseract! You are reeking with its power."

Elizabeth took a defensive stance, the tails of the flames licking at her elbows. She needed to get out of here.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

He stared at her for a second before breaking into laughter. This guy was clearly insane and was definitely going to kill her if she didn't get out.

"Do you think you can lie to me?" He said, stepping closer, "I am a god and you foolish humans will worship me. Now, surrender the Tesseract or you will wish you were _dead_."

"Stay back!" yelled Elizabeth, adding more to her fire, "I don't have anything."

He sneered menacingly at her, green eyes glinting with mirth.

"Lies," he hissed, "your power of controlling flames—only the Tesseract could have allowed you that."

Her power... It had come from somewhere. She could get rid of it. Elizabeth gave it some thought, keeping a watchful eye on the green-eyed man. He seemed to know a lot about this unknown, but could she trust him to not kill her?

"Tell me more about the Tesseract," she finally said.

"It's a source of unimaginable power—too great for you to even comprehend—and I can sense it all over you. It is what gave you this fire."

"How do I find it?"

He let out a low chuckle, "You cannot find it without me. I am the only one who knows where it is." He stepped toward her, his face softening slightly with mild curiosity, "Why would _you_ want to find the Tesseract?"

Elizabeth paused; the flames about her arms grew just a bit softer.

"I want to get rid of this," she let the fire die down a little more, "I never wanted this and I will do anything to get rid of it."

He grinned manically at her, his white teeth standing out eerily against the darkness of the night.

"Then why don't I do you a favour?" He said lowly, stalking towards her, "I'll end your life and you'll be happy to know you will never have that power again."

Suddenly, he leaped at her, hands reaching out for her throat. _Oh god_, Elizabeth thought, _he's going to kill me!_ She bolted out of the way, brandishing a flame covered fist. She swiped her fist across, letting a blast of fire out. It hit him, but did nothing more than stun him for a split second.

But that was all Elizabeth needed. Quickly gathering all the burning into her palms, she let out all she ever had.

A roaring column of flame immediately jetted out from her palms. It lit up the whole area, the blistering heat of it enveloping Elizabeth. The darkness of the woods was momentarily replaced with the heated light of her fire before it hit the man. He flew backwards from the force of it, hitting his head on the trunk of a tree.

Elizabeth lowered her arms, heaving in breaths of air. She needed to refuel the kindling inside her; she had used so much of it. Looking ahead of her, she saw the man. He was unconscious.

"Please don't be dead, please don't be dead," she whispered as she approached him.

She held out her fists before her, just in case he was just playing dead. She nudged him in the side with her boot. No reaction. She tried again. Still no reaction. His chest rose and fell as she heard him take in a shallow breath.

Elizabeth sighed with relief. Okay, he was definitely unconscious then. But what now? Her she was, standing in the woods with an unconscious man at her feet.

It didn't sound too good.

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**A/N**: Okay, so I'll be writing my a/n's at the end of the chapter (or would you prefer the beginning? Tell me!). So, this is my first fic in The Avengers verse. Bear with me guys-I'm still getting the hang of it. Reviews would be much appreciated!

Much love,

Emma.


End file.
